Drug coated stents can improve the overall effectiveness of angioplasty and stenotic procedures performed on the cardiovascular system and other vessels within the body by delivering potent therapeutic compounds to a target site. Anti-inflammatory and anti-thrombogenic drugs may be carried on the stent and released gradually after insertion and deployment of the stent. These drugs and coatings can reduce the trauma to the local tissue bed, aid in the healing process, and significantly reduce the recurrence of narrowing or constriction of the blood vessel that after stent delivery and placement.
It is desirable to have a medicated stent that can be tailored to provide a desired elution rate for one or more drugs and to provide sufficient quantities of bioactive agents without compromising the mechanics of the stent during deployment and use. It would be beneficial to have a drug-elution system that can be tailored to accommodate a variety of drugs for controlled time delivery. Furthermore, it would be beneficial to provide a drug-delivery stent with phased delivery of drugs in effective quantities.